When It Was Me
by Carynne Zero
Summary: Mary and Gray have something, but Claire comes along. Gray stops visiting Mary to hang out with Claire, but how does our librarian feel about this? Graire from Mary's POV Sorry, I'm no good with summaries...


**Okay, this is, uh...well, it's a fanfic—**

**Skye: Well duh, why do you think it's in if it isn't a fanfic?**

**--as I was saying, this is a fanfic about how Mary feels about Claire and Gray together. So yeah, she's jealous of Claire.**

**Uhh...well, I guess that's pretty much it. Sorry if it's not very good, it's my first fic.**

**Skye: Yeah, and it probably isn't good.**

**-whacks Skye- Shut up!**

**Anyways, on with the story!**

**When It Was Me...**

**...-Mary's POV-...**

Everything was going perfectly. That is, until that city girl Claire came into our lives. Golden blonde hair that flowed down her back, mesmerizing sapphire blue eyes, and a cheerful personality to match, she had everything a girl could ask for. Everybody accepted her. Everybody liked her. Sooner or later, the bachelors of Mineral Town were going to fall for her.

She would head toward the church the long way, passing by the Poultry Farm along the way. Everyday, she visited Popuri and Lillia. She was great friends with the pink-haired teenager and her mother, and Rick adored her, but Karen didn't seem to mind. Then she would stop by the Yodel Farm to play with May, Barley's little black-haired granddaughter. Afterwards, she would continue to the church. Carter would greet her with a huge grin which she always returned with a warm smile of her own. She met Cliff and turned his world around. He changed his mind about leaving Mineral Town because of her, and kept praying for a job.

Then she would head on to the clinic. Elli, who she was also friends with, would warmly greet her, but the Doctor would coldly ignore her. Claire was terrified of doctors, but Elli had told me that the blonde farmer was the apple of Tim's eyes.

After the clinic, she would trot to the supermarket, and then to the inn. Karen was a great friend to her, and Ann as well. She visited them everyday. Jeff actually opened up to her, and Sasha was friends with her, as well as all the other married couples of Mineral Town, including my parents.

One fateful Thursday afternoon, she stopped by the library. That's when it happened. She was asking me for a book about farming, and I, being the sweet librarian that I am, pointed to the bookshelf beside him.

Yes, Gray. He was everything to me. His azure blue orbs which stared straight into my blackish ones, his fiery orange hair that hid under his blue UMA hat…he was, in my perspective, perfect.

She approached the shelf and took a book. Then she sat beside him and even smiled at him. I could have sworn I saw him blush when she said hi. No. I couldn't believe what was going on in front of me. I thought I was safe from her. Every other girl in Mineral Town had their guys taken by her, with the exception of Popuri, but that was only because Kai was still in the city.

He kept blushing like hell the entire time she was beside him, reading the farming book she took from the bookshelf. When four o' clock struck, I approached them.

I coldly told her, "Claire, it's four. I have to close up now." Then I smiled sweetly at Gray. "Right, Gray?"

"Gray?" she repeated, looking confused. "Oh, is that your name?" Gray nodded sheepishly. "Nice to meet you, Gray."

"Y—you too…" he muttered.

"I'm Claire, I'm taking over the farm." Her smile captivated him, and the look in his cerulean eyes told me immediately that he liked her.

"I—I'll walk you home," he offered. "I mean, if you want…"

"O—okay…" She blushed a little at his sudden offer.

So they left me here, alone in the library. Gray stopped visiting me for a while because "he was so caught up with work that he barely had time to read". He only came on Thursdays, his day off, _with Claire_.

They had "something". It was definitely more than the "something" between Gray and me. He loved her, and his feelings were returned, unlike my unrequited love for him. Most of the villagers, especially Manna, Sasha and my mother, thought that they were a cute couple. Of course, there were others who disapproved of it, such as Cliff, Kai, Doctor Tim and Rick. But that was only because they all liked her as well. They were probably jealous of Gray because he got to keep her all to himself.

Whenever I asked Gray about his feelings toward Claire, he would stutter, trying to think of an alibi to leave, but I actually got the answer from him the fifth time I asked. He told me that they were just friends according to Claire, but he said that part of him wanted them to be more than that.

After about Fall 15th, which happened to be Karen's birthday and the Fall Harvest at the winery, Gray saw Claire spending time with Cliff at the winery, and he became jealous. He told me about it and let his anger out. Then I discovered that he only thought of me as his best friend. _Best friend_. How could I have been so stupid?!

I was furious. When Monday came, I marched down to Claire's farm and demanded that she leave Gray and I alone. She cried just before I left, apologizing for stealing Gray away from me.

Then, the next afternoon, Gray went to the library. His eyes were puffy and red from crying. In his hand, he clutched a blue feather. A tiny smile appeared on my face.

"Gray—"

"Mary…" he muttered in a low, shattered voice as he stared at the wooden floorboards under him. "I planned on proposing to her today…"

"Her?" I repeated.

"Claire." Anger and rage filled my mind when I heard the dreaded name. "But…I don't know what happened. She—she said she didn't want to be friends with me anymore." His eyes were starting to swell with tears. "I didn't—I just didn't have the courage to pop up the question. I asked her…why she…didn't want to be friends anymore, but she started crying. She told me she just didn't want to be friends and left. D—does she hate me?"

"I—I have to close up now, Gray. Please go home now…" I was at a loss for words. I knew that if he found out that I threatened Claire into leaving him, he would never forgive me. He would hate me for sure.

From then on, he started visiting me everyday again, except on Mondays. But I couldn't even bring myself to talk to him because he would just spend his time weeping about Claire. That is, until Winter 5th, the day before his birthday. I couldn't stand seeing him like that, so I went to Claire.

"Claire, I'm begging you, for Gray's sake, tell him it's okay to be friends again. Please!"

"But I thought you wanted me to stop talking to him…" she muttered blankly, not turning away from her work. "Why do you suddenly want me to—?"

"Tomorrow's his birthday, and I can't bear seeing him looking so devastated as if it was the end of his world."

"Fine then, I'll become friends with him, by tomorrow."

I ran home crying that day. I knew that it would end one way or another. There was only one loser, and that would have been either me or Gray. In the end, I chose to sacrifice myself for Gray's happiness. But still, I wish Gray had never met Claire. That he never fell in love with her. That he never shed tears for her, but instead, for me.

The next day, I passed by the beach in the evening. I told my parents that I would be home late because of a special occasion. There they were, standing in the middle of the area, Claire and Gray. Then I quickly hid behind the crates and watched them.

"Can I talk to you?" they asked each other in unison then laughed.

"You first," Gray chuckled, smiling gorgeously at her. How come he only smiles like that at her?

"Okay." They walked to the dock and sat down. Claire took her shoes off and splashed her feet in the cold ocean water. "I, uh…I wanna be friends with you again."

"That—that's great!" he stuttered, wrapping his arms around her. "Sorry, I hadn't really thought this through…a—and I'm not good with words…" He stood up and she followed him, after putting her shoes back on.

"It's…okay…" She was nervous too, and blushing. "Oh, and h—happy birthday…"

"Th—thanks. Okay, m—my turn." He took a deep breath. "What I wanted to say is… umm…Claire, you're the best thing that's ever happened to me, and…I—I love you…"

"Gray…" she murmured, but her voice was so soft that he could barely hear her. "But Mary—"

"…and I was hoping…" He took out a blue feather. "Would you be mine forever?"

"G—Gray…" This time he heard her. "But Mary loves you…"

"M—Mary?" He was confused then he smiled. "No, you've got it all wrong. We're just _friends_. _Best_ friends and nothing more."

"But she told me herself. That's why I said we can't be friends anymore."

"Then…how do you expect me to love her back, if she threatened the woman I love to leave me? You're the one I love, not her. You're the one I want to be with forever, Claire. You. So, what do you say?"

"Gray, I—"

"Claire, I love you so much, since the day I met you…"

Then he did it. Under the beautiful moonlight that illuminated the couple, he pressed his lips against hers. He _kissed_ her. Her eyes widened in shock, but then they closed in bliss. She put her hands around his neck and he put his around her waist, deepening the passionate kiss.

I couldn't bear the sight, so I ran home crying twice as much as I did the day before. Mother noticed me and asked what was wrong, but I just shook my head and went to bed without even having any dinner.

Everyday, I cried alone in the library, like Gray used to. I knew that he was happy with someone else, someone other than me. I loved him, with all my heart, but he loved someone else. He loved Claire, the beautiful blonde farmer whose beauty matched that of Karen's, angels, even the Harvest Goddess. **(A/N: People who adore her would understand. Me, I just put it there because she was the only goddess they had and I couldn't put in Aphrodite.)**

And here I am now, at the church, walking down the aisle. No, I'm not the bride. I'm one of the five bridesmaids. Of course, Claire is the bride, looking more beautiful than ever. And Gray is the groom.

Tears ran down my eyes as the stroll down the aisle was finished. I had replaced my glasses with contact lenses for the special occasion. Then I looked around, only to meet the eyes of a brunette. He was a stranger to me, but I had seen a picture of him in Claire's house. He was her brother, Jack.

**So, how'd ya like it?**

**Skye: It was horrible.**

**It was? -cries-**

**Skye: No, no, it was brilliant! -comforts me-**

**-evil grin- My evil plan to get Skye to be nice to me is working. -evil laugh-**

**Damian: -pushes Skye in a closet- Let's go, onee-chan. R&R.**

**Yeah, R&R!**


End file.
